1. Field of Invention
This invention pertains to an adjustable connector for attaching accessories, such as a wakeboard holder, to a water vessel, such as a recreational boat. More particularly, this invention pertains to an adjustable connector including a plug that mates with a socket and provides rotational adjustment about the longitudinal axis of the plug relative to the socket.
2. Description of the Related Art
Water vessels, such as recreational boats, include various accessories, such as wakeboard holders, speakers, lights, mirrors, and such. One common and popular boat accessory is a wakeboard holder, which is commonly a rack that clamps one or more wakeboards when not being used. One example of such a wakeboard holder is U.S. Pat. No. 6,886,795, issued to Schultz on May 3, 2005, titled “Accessory storage device,” which discloses a storage device that is used in pairs to hold wakeboards and other planar objects. Each storage device is a fork with a clamping member that is forced against a wakeboard when a handle is operated. The storage device is secured to a planar member that is a mounting structure, which is part of the boat.
Boat accessories are mounted to the boat at various locations and to various members of the boat, for example, towers, stanchions, decks, windshield frames, and railings. Due to the custom nature of many boats, single application or custom made brackets and supports are often used to support accessories. For example, a boat tower may have speakers that are attached to the tower by way of a mounting connecter that clamps to the tower and bolts to the speaker box. Oftentimes, the custom brackets and supports offer little or no adjustability if the boat operator desires to reposition the accessory, such as, for example, when the speaker is rear facing and the boat operator desires to have the speaker be side facing. Accordingly, one problem with attaching accessories to a boat is how to adjust the positioning of the accessory with an esthetically pleasing connector, with the connector having the strength to withstand the pounding and vibration that such accessories are subject to on a boat.
Known devices that attempt to solve this problem include cylindrical plugs with smooth sidewalls engaging cylindrical sockets, also with smooth sidewalls. The plugs are secured in the sockets with pins inserted in corresponding holes in the plug and socket. The pins are parallel to and offset from the longitudinal axis of the cylindrical plugs. A plurality of holes in either or both of the plug and the socket allow the plug to assume one of several fixed positions relative to the socket. One problem with this solution is the difficulty in aligning the pin with the hole when inserting the plug into the socket. Another problem is that the pins are susceptible to shearing when excessive rotational force is applied.